BMW 335d or Merc C350d

cahonis said:
The 335d M Sport has the same performance as the 330i coupe and for my journeys would be cheaper on fuel, from what I've seen anyway.
Click to expand...

But, like for like, it will cost more to buy. So you'll get a newer car for the same money or a pile of change for the same age car.

Are the running costs on the diesels much more than the petrol ones?
Click to expand...

The 330i has no turbo and the pre MY08 model has a reliable indirect injection engine without the expensive prone to failure ancilliary components fitted to the diesels.

Once they get old I fail to see the point in diesel BMW's. The extra risk cancels out the minor fuel economy benefits anyway, it's not like its brand new and not your problem if it goes wrong leaving you free to enjoy the extra economy.

The 335d M Sport I'm looking at on Saturday I could get for less than auction prices by the way. I haven't seen a decent one for less than £14.5k - I wouldn't be paying anywhere near that much for it.
Click to expand...

The 335d is a particularly desireable car, why is this one so cheap? Why sell it to you for less than it would sell for at auction?

Why pay 5 figures for a 7 year old car because it says '335d' on the back?
 
Last edited:
[TW]Fox;25760823 said:
The 335d is a particularly desireable car, why is this one so cheap? Why sell it to you for less than it would sell for at auction?

Why pay 5 figures for a 7 year old car because it says '335d' on the back?
Click to expand...

Brother-in-law got it cheap from a guy who is emigrating and wanted to sell quickly. He's giving me first dibs on it as he knows I need a car now.

I sense little love for the diesels in here :D
 
If it's a particularly good deal then it might make more sense - my comments are based on each car being available at its market value.

If its under 60k miles, protect it with a BMW warranty. Then it's somebody elses problem when it goes wrong :p
 
When it goes wrong is so true of these alas, don't IMO be tempted to remap it either, perhaps a coincidence but my mates 07 plate one started playing up soon after he had his done - it's now back to std - he's still plagued by injector issues and it's turbo has recently got noticeably louder, a worrying sign for his bruised pocket.

He wishes he'd got a 330i for the reasons Fox points out.

Still, a wonderful car to drive it's overtaking abilities are terrific, I'd like one myself one day although unless near new or warranty backed I wouldn't entertain the diesel.
 
Echoing above - the 335d is really not all that economical. Not at all. People normally get around 35-40mpg doing mixed mileage from it.

The 330d IMO is the logical choice. Quite a bit more fuel efficient expect 40mpg, not appreciably slower. But it's boring. There's no escaping that it's just boring.

The 330i is a very good choice as it'll average 30-35mpg quite easily and put a smile on your face when you want it to (particularly the N52), in a way no diesel in the range will.

My 335i with the older N54 engine averages 28mpg and that's without hanging around and driving pretty much only on fast A roads, so you can expect the lighter and more advanced N52 or much more advanced N53 to be 15-20% more efficient without much problem.
 
ST TDCi.

It's a Mondeo - Check
It comes with some decent toys - Check
Diesel - Check
Poser Blue - Check
Costs around £3k for a decent example

Budget for DMF/Injectors/Turbo which should take you to around £2k on maintenance, depending on who you get it it sorted by. Oh, and it's surprisingly good on fuel.

:cool:
 
Vita said:
ST TDCi.

It's a Mondeo - Check
It comes with some decent toys - Check
Diesel - Check
Poser Blue - Check
Costs around £3k for a decent example

Budget for DMF/Injectors/Turbo which should take you to around £2k on maintenance, depending on who you get it it sorted by. Oh, and it's surprisingly good on fuel.

:cool:
Click to expand...

No thanks.
 
if he's managing over 30mpg from an st220, 45+ mpg sounds realistic to me? I could reliably get 45+ mpg on long runs from my old one...


but yeah, dont buy without warranty :) Also, id much rather have a the 3l twin turbo diesel over the 3l n/a unless it was a convertible....and i've owned (own 1 now) 2x 3.0 petrol BMWs and 1x 3l twin turbo diesel BMWs :p the engine is excellent, and still the only diesel ive actually remotely liked to drive.
 
Last edited:
Can you find out if the 335 has service history + what jobs / tyres it needs doing soon? Servicing costs arn't the end of the world but it's something I'd check if it's approaching 60.
 
Myshra said:
Can you find out if the 335 has service history + what jobs / tyres it needs doing soon? Servicing costs arn't the end of the world but it's something I'd check if it's approaching 60.
Click to expand...

My Brother-in-Law told me it has a FSH and he'll get his mechanics to service it before I take it :)

He's got no reason to to knowingly get me a lemon so I'll trust his judgement as I wouldn't know any better tbh.
 
cahonis said:
My Brother-in-Law told me it has a FSH and he'll get his mechanics to service it before I take it :)
Click to expand...

You'll knock its value if you let randoms service it, for a car thats worth potentially what, £14k (irrespective of what you buy it for), it's probably worth keeping the BMW history up.

It's not as if its even that expensive.
 
[TW]Fox;25763270 said:
You'll knock its value if you let randoms service it, for a car thats worth potentially what, £14k (irrespective of what you buy it for), it's probably worth keeping the BMW history up.

It's not as if its even that expensive.
Click to expand...

True, but they can still service it outside of it's usual annual/mileage service requirements to make sure it doesn't have any obvious problems etc.
 
There is no love for diesels here; some points are entirely valid though.

You only live once, go with your heart and enjoy the car.
 
How come there aren't any 330i in M Sport trim? Did they not make them in this trim or are they just rare?

EDIT: I should I add I was looking at newer LCI models, there are plenty pre-LCI.
 
Last edited:
IAmATeaf said:
How come there aren't any 330i in M Sport trim? Did they not make them in this trim or are they just rare?

EDIT: I should I add I was looking at newer LCI models, there are plenty pre-LCI.
Click to expand...

They exist but they are just very rare. It was discontinued entirely in early 2010. So you've only got just over a year of production to search through, sadly.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom